Golf Rules (Ender Pearl)
Rules defined by _Daata
The Game, Player Conduct and the Rules
1.1 The Game of Golf
Golf is played in a round of 9 or 18 holes on a course by throwing an ender pearl from a position.
Each hole starts with a throw from the teeing area and ends when the player is in the hole.
For each throw, the player:
• Plays the course as they find it, and
• Plays their throw where it landed
But there are exceptions where the Rules allow the player to alter conditions on
the course and require or allow the player to throw their pearl from a different location than it
has landed.
1.2 Standards of Player Conduct
1.2a Conduct Expected of All Players
All players are expected to play in the spirit of the game by:
• Acting with integrity – for example, by following the Rules, applying all penalties,
and being honest in all aspects of play.
• Showing consideration to others – for example, by playing at a prompt pace,
looking out for the safety of others, and not distracting the play of another player.
If a player plays a ball in a direction where there might be a danger of hitting
someone, they should immediately shout a warning, such as the traditional
warning of “fore”.
Rule 1 introduces these central principles of the game for the player:
• Play the course as you find it and play the ball as it lies.
• Play by the Rules and in the spirit of the game.
• You are responsible for applying your own penalties if you breach a Rule, so
that you cannot gain any potential advantage over your opponent in match play
or other players in stroke play.
The Game, Player Conduct 1 and the Rules
Rule 1
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Rule 1
• Taking good care of the course – for example, by replacing divots,
smoothing bunkers, repairing ball-marks, and not causing unnecessary
damage to the course.
There is no penalty under the Rules for failing to act in this way, except that the
Committee may disqualify a player for acting contrary to the spirit of the game if it
finds that the player has committed serious misconduct.
“Serious misconduct” is player behaviour that is so far removed from what is
expected in golf that the most severe sanction of removing a player from the
competition is justified.
Penalties other than disqualification may be imposed for player misconduct only if
those penalties are adopted as part of a Code of Conduct under Rule 1.2b.
1.2b Code of Conduct
The Committee may set its own standards of player conduct in a Code of Conduct
adopted as a Local Rule.
• The Code may include penalties for breach of its standards, such as a one-stroke
penalty or the general penalty.
• The Committee may also disqualify a player for serious misconduct in failing to
meet the Code’s standards.
See Committee Procedures, Section 5I (explaining the standards of player conduct
that may be adopted).
1.3 Playing by the Rules
1.3a Meaning of “Rules”; Terms of the Competition
The term “Rules” means:
• Rules 1-25 and the definitions in these Rules of Golf, and
• Any “Local Rules” the Committee adopts for the competition or the course.
Players are also responsible for complying with all “Terms of the Competition”
adopted by the Committee (such as entry requirements, the form and dates of play,
the number of rounds and the number and order of holes in a round).